Club and country need healthy Elwood return

No-one will have a heavier load this weekend than Eric Elwood, who plays for Ireland against Italy on Saturday before returning to Galway in readiness for Galwegians's do-or-die relegation four-pointer with free-falling Ballymena on Sunday.

George Hook will be keeping his fingers crossed that his captain comes through Saturday's Test unscathed as he selects from an unchanged squad of 21. Barely clinging onto their AIB League Division One status, Galwegians must win at home on Sunday for their final-day fixture against St Mary's to have any meaning for them.

Were Galwegians to inflict a seventh successive defeat on Ballymena on Sunday, it would move them to within two points of three clubs level on six points and so, mathematically, ensure a four-way fight on the last day to avoid the two relegation places.

Ballymena would themselves be embroiled, along with their last day hosts Blackrock, as well as Clontarf, who are away to Terenure.

Ballymena expect to have a quartet of absentees from last Saturday's defeat at Cork Constitution - Andy Matchett, Stephen Ritchie, Tony McWhirter and Stanley McDowell - back in harness.

The ever-changing promotion race in Division Two is even more complex. Successive defeats for Malone, Portadown and UCC seem to have signalled the end of their hopes. Even DLSP and Old Crescent faltered last week (as did leaders Dungannon), leaving the way open for Wanderers to re-enter the fray.

Effectively, this looks like being a three-way fight between DLSP, Wanderers and Crescent for the second promotion place behind Dungannon. Viewed in that light, next Sunday's meeting of DLSP and Old Crescent is arguably the most significant promotion four-pointer of the campaign.

Accordingly, the Kilternan club are expecting their biggest crowd of the season. An historic place in the top flight would be a huge boon, all the more so as it would coincide neatly with their centenary year next season.

When, under the guise of Palmerston, they moved to the Dublin mountains beyond Stepaside in 1979, it was interpreted as a move to outer Mongolia. But gradually, Dublin has spread to them, and now the catchment area for the club is huge, while the eventual completion of the ring road will leave them handily placed adjacent to the Southern Cross roundabout.

Promotion, as first team manager Conor McCormack points out, would further enhance their potential for recruitment. This would be a pleasant change for a club which has long since developed its own under-age talent only to see many of its products disperse to other clubs.

Much of the credit for the club's improvement on the pitch is attributed to their diligent Kiwi coach, Philip Werahiko, who joined the club from Enniscorthy five years ago when they were in the third division.

Even so, a turn-of-the-year run of four points from five games (DLSP failing to hit double figures in the last four) against Old Belvedere, Skerries, Dolphin and Old Wesley left them with just eight points from their first seven games and hardly hinted at a concerted promotion push.

Whereupon DLSP recovered from a 19-7 interval deficit away to Greystones to win by 39-34, and so signalled a free-scoring run of five straight wins prior to last Friday's defeat away to Sunday's Well.

"It's almost climatic," says McCormack in explaining the turnaround. "The pitches began to firm up and we've got some strong runners in the backs like Mark Cunningham and Shane Stephens, who were able to run with the ball at pace."

The nearby dump, clearly in view from the clubhouse, is still a bit of an eyesore although the council have plans to replace it with a golf course. The club also have plans to develop terracing and floodlights, although in the immediate term their primary concern is matters on the pitch.

"For the last few years, we've worked on the basis of breaking even and not running up debts by over-financing the playing staff. So at least if we do go up, we'll be on a sound financial footing."

The IRFU are hopeful of a crowd in the region of 25,000 for Saturday's Test between Ireland and Italy at Lansdowne Road. The kick-off is at 4.15 p.m. in part to avoid a clash with the Aintree Grand National, which will be shown inside the ground on a big screen.

Ticket prices have been reduced to £20 (stands), £15 (touch-line), £7 (terraces) and £3 (schoolboys'/girls').